Nicolas Matei

More students wrote about the pandemic than any other topic, and none was better than the essay submitted by Nicolas Matei, whose father, Gheorghe Matei, works at the Rainbow Room. His writing was so good it was deemed worthy of the first place prize of $1,500 in the essay category. "The virus was touching people everywhere and it was devastating to witness the emotional and psychological effect it was leaving behind," Nicolas wrote about the outbreak, explaining, "The fear of 'not knowing' kept us awake at night . . . the 'not knowing' how to protect ourselves and our families, the 'not knowing' who could be next, the 'not knowing' when we could see loved ones again, if ever." Nicolas succinctly expressed a thought that many had: "And then all of a sudden we became painfully aware of how much we had taken for granted, some of the privileges we had been enjoying all of our lives. The simple acts of hugging and shaking hands were now forbidden. In an instant we were asked to stay six feet apart, wear masks. No close contact. Not even with our grandparents. Especially with our grandparents!" There's more. Nicolas wrote about essential workers, saying, "We became aware of people who still had to go to work . . . we found ourselves thanking them for their dedication and commitment." Nicolas covered all the bases about the pandemic, even to the point of noting that "the generation that lived through the pandemic became resilient." In ending this superlative essay Nicolas summed it up this way: "We adapted, we grew strong . . . we became empathetic and compassionate and kind. We lifted each other up and vowed to hang in there until this was over, even when we didn’t know when this would be over. Our only hope is that we won’t revert back to our old selves but that we will always care for each other even when the pandemic becomes a thing of the past." We certainly share that thought with Nicolas!